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IMDbPro

The Clown Murders

  • 1976
  • Not Rated
  • 1h 36m
IMDb RATING
3.6/10
530
YOUR RATING
The Clown Murders (1976)
DramaHorrorMysteryThriller

Four men kidnap an old girlfriend on Halloween night as a joke to ruin a real estate deal, only to have a very real clown-masked killer stalk them seeking revenge.Four men kidnap an old girlfriend on Halloween night as a joke to ruin a real estate deal, only to have a very real clown-masked killer stalk them seeking revenge.Four men kidnap an old girlfriend on Halloween night as a joke to ruin a real estate deal, only to have a very real clown-masked killer stalk them seeking revenge.

  • Director
    • Martyn Burke
  • Writer
    • Martyn Burke
  • Stars
    • Stephen Young
    • Susan Keller
    • Lawrence Dane
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    3.6/10
    530
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Martyn Burke
    • Writer
      • Martyn Burke
    • Stars
      • Stephen Young
      • Susan Keller
      • Lawrence Dane
    • 17User reviews
    • 14Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos41

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    Top cast27

    Edit
    Stephen Young
    Stephen Young
    • Charlie
    Susan Keller
    • Alison
    Lawrence Dane
    Lawrence Dane
    • Philip
    John Candy
    John Candy
    • Ollie
    Gary Reineke
    Gary Reineke
    • Rosie
    John Bayliss
    • Peter
    Al Waxman
    Al Waxman
    • Police Sergeant
    Michael Magee
    • Compton
    Cec Linder
    Cec Linder
    • The Developer
    William Osler
    William Osler
    • Harrison
    Philip Craig
    Philip Craig
    • Tom
    Dan Boltman
    • Polo Player
    Peter Calverley
    • Polo Player
    Glenn Ferrier
    • Polo Player
    Tom Offen
    • Polo Player
    Kenny Phillips
    • Polo Player
    Paul Sage
    • Polo Player
    Lou Scott
    • Polo Player
    • Director
      • Martyn Burke
    • Writer
      • Martyn Burke
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews17

    3.6530
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    Featured reviews

    6abbazabakyleman-98834

    John Candy as You've Never Seen Him Before

    Another early film role for a then-unknown John Candy in this psychological drama/horror film about a kidnapping prank gone horribly wrong. If you're expecting Candy to be funny, look elsewhere. His character is a pathetic wuss who is caught in the middle of the situation, but his acting is pretty good in a non-comedic role. The film itself is decent, but goes in several directions, throughout.
    1arfdawg-1

    Don't Waste Your Time

    John, svelte, John Candy in a horror film!

    Very very cheaply made. Set in Canada. The movie was never released theatrically in the US (VHS then later DVD)

    It's not a very good movie.

    I have no idea why John Candy is in this. Very strange. But not in a good way.

    The plot A group of young professionals decides to play a practical joke on one of their ex-girlfriends who married a rich man who is about to close a major real estate deal.

    They plan to kidnap her and mess up the deal.

    Unfortunately, the joke becomes deadly serious.
    3HorrorFan1984

    The Clown Murders

    A revenge plot which was supposed to be a prank turns deadly in 'The Clown Murders', a film that saw the debut of legendary John Candy.

    A group of young professionals decide to play a practical joke on one of their ex-grilfriends named Alison who ended up marrying a rich man instead of him (Alex). The professionals learn that the rich guy is a about to close a major real estate deal. In order to mess up the deal, they come up with a plan to kidnap Alison. As the kidnapping prank turns unexpectedly violent, the men are forced to deal with the fallout of their actions ... and forced to deal with someone in a clown costume stalking them.

    'The Clown Murders' is a very silly film with very little direction. It doesn't make a lot of sense as to why three of the four men would want to kidnap Alison, and the movie never does it's job to explain why either. The dialogue is also very simple and generic, with tons of fat jokes being slung the way of John Candy's character for example. The only parts of the movie that were enjoyable were about 5-10 minutes when they first kidnapped Alison and the mysterious clown showed up. It looked like the movie was heading somewhere, and then bam - nothing. The ending made very little sense on top of all that as well.

    I would skip this one despite the cool VHS cover art and intriguing movie title. Those are the only redeeming things about the film.

    3/10.
    2Coventry

    Rotten Candy

    The only reason why this dud of a film hasn't disappeared into complete obscurity just yet is because it features an early role of John Candy; - the proudly Canadian actor/comedian who would become very popular throughout the 1980s and early 1990s, and die at the far too young age of 43. Fans of John Candy shouldn't bother to track down "The Clown Murders", though. In fact, nobody should bother to track it down, because it's one of the single most boring, uneventful and inept thrillers of the entire 70s decade. Four pathetic losers, including Candy, joke about kidnapping their attractive friend Alisson, simply because they can't accept that she's now married to a successful businessman and busy selling the farming estate where they all played whilst growing up. They execute their plan during a Halloween party, dressed as clowns, and lock her up in her own farm. The opening sequences and character introductions were already tedious, but the actual kidnapping and hostage situation are downright dreadful. Absolutely nothing happens, except for arguing between the four losers mutually and shots of John Candy shoving fast-food down his throat. The plot promised another mysterious clown killer coming after them, but he only pops up during the finale and doesn't do a lot of murdering, neither. One to avoid at all costs, that's the only sane and righteous recommendation I can make.
    5HumanoidOfFlesh

    The rising of boredom.

    A group of young professionals decides to play a practical joke on one of their ex-girlfriends who married a rich man who is about to close a major real estate deal.They will kidnap her and mess up the deal.But the joke becomes deadly serious when someone gets killed."The Clown Murders" is a boring thriller with John Candy and Lawrence Dane of "Rituals" fame.It's basically a hostage drama with 10 minutes of slasher in the finale.The killer wears clown costume and the scene in the barn is pretty eerie,but the action is slow and dull.If you liked "Straw Dogs" or "Death Weekend" you may give this one a look,but don't expect too much.5 clowns out of 10.

    Related interests

    Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama
    Mia Farrow in Rosemary's Baby (1968)
    Horror
    Jack Nicholson and Faye Dunaway in Chinatown (1974)
    Mystery
    Cho Yeo-jeong in Parasite (2019)
    Thriller

    Storyline

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    Did you know

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    • Trivia
      An early role for John Candy, many contemporary releases hype up his role in the film.
    • Connections
      Referenced in Found (2012)

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    FAQ15

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    Details

    Edit
    • Release date
      • September 17, 1976 (Canada)
    • Country of origin
      • Canada
    • Language
      • English
    • Also known as
      • The clown murders
    • Filming locations
      • Toronto, Ontario, Canada
    • Production companies
      • Magnum Pictures
      • Canadian Film Development Corporation (CFDC)
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Box office

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    • Budget
      • CA$135,000 (estimated)
    See detailed box office info on IMDbPro

    Tech specs

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    • Runtime
      • 1h 36m(96 min)
    • Color
      • Color
    • Sound mix
      • Mono
    • Aspect ratio
      • 1.85 : 1

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